Speaking at a two-day Awareness Campaign in Durban on last week, Gondwe highlighted the severe impact these institutions have on students and their families.
KwaZulu-Natal, which has the second-largest student population in South Africa after Gauteng, faces a significant challenge with the proliferation of unregistered private colleges. Additionally, some registered institutions offer unaccredited programmes, further exacerbating the issue.
“Some of the learners are the only hope for their families. Their parents invest in their education so that their child can be qualified and have a successful career... Now, if a learner studies via a bogus college, they are effectively robbed of an opportunity to gain a legitimate qualification and employment opportunities. It is also robbing the student and their parents of hard-earned money,” said Gondwe.
Government and Stakeholders Collaborate to Tackle the Issue
The awareness campaign is a joint initiative led by the Deputy Minister in collaboration with the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, the Department of Employment and Labour, and the Department of Home Affairs.
Nkosenhle Madlala, Chairperson of eThekwini Municipality’s Governance and Human Capital Committee, emphasised their responsibility in ensuring students register at accredited institutions.
“As a university city, we have a responsibility to ensure that the thousands of people who come to our city to access higher education register with recognised and legal institutions,” he said.
Durban is home to major institutions, including the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Durban University of Technology, Mangosuthu University of Technology, several TVET colleges, and private higher education institutions.
Inspections Uncover Compliance Issues
As part of the campaign, Gondwe and other stakeholders conducted inspections of private colleges in Durban’s city centre. While some institutions were registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), compliance concerns were identified. Students also voiced complaints about tuition fees and the lack of refunds.
The Deputy Minister instructed DHET officials to assist affected students and reiterated the importance of operating lawfully.
“They are allowed to operate, but they have to operate within lawful parameters, and that is what we are trying to ensure—that their operations are legal, registered with us, and that the programmes they’re offering are accredited by our quality assurance bodies,” Gondwe stated.
Further oversight campaigns are planned for the coming weeks to ensure compliance and protect students from fraudulent institutions.
